Ethibond - do you avoid it in your practice?

There’s no possible way for patients to be able to comprehend all the nuances involved with plastic surgery procedures on a technical level. Because all of these bits of knowledge require context, you simply can’t isolate down decision making two white brand suture is being used. Any foreign body placed inside the body during surgery whether permanent or absorbable that is contaminated, will cause an infection that cannot be cleared by taking anabiotic’s. The foreign body will eventually need to be removed. Infections are pretty rare in tummy tuck procedures. Because of that patients should recognize there are inherent risk, but having chronic infected sutures is probably relatively low in terms of actual things going wrong that have substantial impact. while these complications can and do happen, they are not nearly as frequent as having aesthetically undesirable outcomes. Ending up with contaminated sutures is inherently, unavoidable, and simply happens to a select few patients. There is no preventative measure that’s not already taken to prevent this from happening. In other words, the type of suture used is not the determining factor. Almost all plastic surgeons will use prophylactic antibiotics, but even with that sometimes infections do happen.
In the end these variables are outside the control of patient and provider. What patients do you have control over is getting a clear understanding of the wrong candidacy for the procedure and choosing the right provider. instead of spending hours on the Internet, reading about suture material and rare complications. I suggest patients focus all of their efforts on provider selection. In the end, there are really only two variables that matter when it comes to long-term patient satisfaction when it comes to cosmetic surgery. Those two variables are candidacy for the procedure and choice of provider.
Focus your efforts on having more in person consultations which will help you get the best understanding of your own candidacy for the procedure and help select the best provider. There’s no correct number of consultations needed to find a quality provider, but I suggest patients start by having at least five in person, consultations to help properly vet providers and find the best one. During each in person consultation, ask each provider to open up their portfolio and show you their entire collection of before, and after pictures of previous patients who had similar body characteristics to your own. As providers to show you examples of excellent outcomes, average outcomes, and outcomes that did not turn out, as well as they had hoped for. And experience provider should have no difficulty showing you at least 50 sets of before, and after pictures of commonly performed procedures like a full tummy tuck. Judge results based on who gets the most natural looking belly buttons on a consistent basis with a scar that is very low was sad and follows anatomic contours naturally and evenly on both sides. The torso should look attractive proportionate and appropriate from all angles, including from behind.
In the end, the number of patients who have concerns or are unhappy with parts of the outcome is far more likely than having a serious complication like an infection. Infections in the end do happen, but are outside of patience and physicians control. Provider selection is completely at the patient’s control, and you should focus all your efforts on the variables you have the ability to take control over.
The best,
Mats Hagstrom, MD